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The geographical differences in these types of avoidable deaths suggest there is a 'postcode lottery' when it comes to healthcare, which experts says is "unacceptable."

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, council chairman of the British Medical Association, said: "Access to healthcare should not be determined by locality or socioeconomic background, but these figures suggest that patients in East Yorkshire are being subjected to unacceptable variations in care.

More than 350 of the 665 avoidable deaths in the city could have been prevented with good healthcare

"Increasing the provision of public and preventative health care services is an important measure, particularly for those who are likely to die from an avoidable illness such as smoking.

"Given the current strain on NHS services, the government must also provide the necessary funding to ensure that those patients who need to can have timely access to high-quality care regardless of their geographical location."

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A department of health and social care spokesman said: "Every death resulting from a failing in care is a tragedy, and despite the NHS being ranked as the world's safest healthcare system for a second time, we need to do more to improve care.

"That's why the NHS is now publishing data on the number of avoidable deaths to help deliver safer care in future as well as delivering world-leading public health plans to tackle cardivascular disease, diabetes and smoking."